What things should I check when buying a house?

Your friend's water pressure story is the perfect example of the real lesson: the most expensive surprises are usually things nobody thought to test, not things the inspector missed. Start with the water pressure question directly, since it prompted this. Run fixtures during your own walkthrough, and at the inspection ask the inspector to test static pressure and flow. Low pressure comes from a few different places and they cost wildly different amounts to fix: municipal supply pressure, a failing pressure regulator, undersized or corroded galvanized supply lines, or, if the home is on a well, pump and yield capacity. Knowing which one you have is the difference between a small part and a repipe. Now, the thread already covered the good inspection add-ons: sewer scope, radon, HOA documents, title. Those are right and I would do all of them. Let me give you the category nobody mentioned, which is the things an inspector will not check because they are not physical conditions. Permit history. Pull it from the county or city building department. If the basement was finished, the deck added, or the kitchen moved without permits, that is a real problem at resale and sometimes at appraisal, and no inspector will tell you about it because it is a records question, not a visual one. Flood zone. Check the FEMA designation for the specific parcel. This determines whether your lender requires flood insurance, and standard homeowners policies generally exclude flood damage. It is a large recurring cost that people discover after they are in contract. Insurability, meaning an actual quote, not an estimate. Get one during your inspection period. Prior claims on the property can affect both availability and price, and finding out late that a house is expensive or difficult to insure has killed a lot of deals. Ten minutes on the phone during due diligence. School attendance boundary. Confirm it with the district, not the listing. Listings get this wrong regularly and boundaries change. Survey. It tells you where your boundaries actually are, whether anything encroaches, and where easements sit. It is also usually what lets you remove the standard survey exception from your title policy, which otherwise leaves you uncovered for exactly those problems. Three more, all cheap and all commonly skipped. Read Schedule B of your title commitment, which is where the exceptions live, meaning what your title policy will not cover. Easements, CC&Rs, mineral rights. If the property is on a well or septic, and in the foothills west of Denver plenty are, get water quality and yield testing and a separate septic inspection. Neither is part of a standard home inspection. Ask for utility bills for the last twelve months. It is the fastest way to find out whether a house is expensive to heat, and it tells you more about insulation and windows than any visual inspection will. One habit worth adopting: attend the inspection. Do not just read the report. Walking through with the inspector for two hours teaches you more about the house than the document does, and you get to ask "how bad is that, really," which is the question the report never quite answers. I am a real estate professional, not a home inspector, so hire good specialists and let them scope their own work. My name is Zoltan Peresztegi and I work in Los Angeles, the South Bay and on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, so I am not your Colorado agent. If you want an introduction to a strong buyer's agent in the Morrison or Evergreen area who knows the well and septic questions that come with that terrain, message me and I will make one. Zoltan

Absolutely. Most buyers focus on the things they can see—paint colors, countertops, and flooring—but some of the most important items are the ones that affect how the house functions. In my 23+ years as a Realtor, I've found that buyers should pay attention to both the home's condition and how it actually operates during showings and inspections. A few things I would check include: Water pressure at sinks, tubs, and showers. Drainage speed in sinks and tubs. Age and condition of the roof. Age of the HVAC system and whether it is cooling and heating properly. Signs of water intrusion, staining, or moisture. Doors and windows that don't open or close properly. Cracks that may indicate foundation movement. Electrical outlets and panels. Condition of the plumbing. Attic and crawl space conditions, if accessible. Exterior drainage around the home. I also recommend visiting the property more than once if possible. A home can feel very different at different times of day, during rain, or when neighbors are home. Most importantly, don't skip the inspection. A good home inspector will evaluate hundreds of items and can identify concerns that aren't obvious during a showing. One thing I've learned is that every house has issues. The goal isn't to find a perfect house—it's to understand what you're buying and determine whether the condition is consistent with the price you're paying. A good Realtor can help you identify potential concerns before you make an offer, and a thorough inspector can help you understand what repairs or maintenance may be needed after closing. Mary Wassef Founder | Broker Circa Real Estate Top Producing Houston Realtor | Luxury & Historic Home Specialist Five Star Professional Award Recipient (15+ Years) | Luxury Home Marketing Guild Member | PRNEWS Award Winner Serving Houston Heights, Woodland Heights, Sunset Heights, Norhill, Garden Oaks, Oak Forest & Spring Branch

James, have a home inspection. Keith Jean-Pierre Managing Principal The Dapper Agents Real Estate Operations in ALL 50 States

Hey James, the things I do for my clients is that I pay for an inspection and I give them the reinsurance they need before they buy the house. Most transactions for a realtor's commission is paid by the seller in most cases but always negotiable between buyer and seller. If you are seeking this type of help for buying your new house let me know We can make sure you feel 100% comfortable moving into your new home. Text or call me at 720-532-5213

One thing people should understand right away is that Colorado is a very buyer-friendly state when it comes to the protections built into the real estate contract. Buyers are typically given several opportunities during the transaction to investigate the property and terminate the contract if something doesn’t look right, while still receiving their earnest money back. That said, every home and every seller is different. Homes can come with unique issues, and some things will be discovered during inspections while others may remain hidden, whether intentionally or not. The goal is to reduce your risk as much as possible during the due diligence period. At a high level, there are several important things I always recommend reviewing when buying a home in Colorado. First, make sure the title company is providing title insurance and carefully review the title commitment and any exclusions. This helps confirm ownership, easements, liens, and other legal matters tied to the property. Second, work with a trusted and thorough home inspector. A good inspection can uncover many potential issues before you close. In addition to a general home inspection, I typically recommend a few additional tests depending on the property. Sewer scope inspections are very valuable because sewer line repairs can be extremely expensive. Radon testing is important in Colorado due to naturally occurring radon levels in many areas. Infrared testing can sometimes help detect hidden moisture or insulation issues inside walls and ceilings. Another important step is reviewing the seller’s due diligence documents. This may include past repair invoices, insurance claims, permits, and any other documentation related to work that has been done on the home. If the property is in an HOA, you should carefully review the HOA documents, financials, and rules as well. In Colorado specifically, you also want to check whether the property is located in a metro district. Metro districts can affect property taxes and future assessments, so it’s important to understand how they work and what the long-term costs may be. If you go through these steps thoroughly, you can significantly reduce your exposure to risk when buying a home. However, it’s important to understand that risk can never be reduced to zero. One of the best things a homeowner can do is set aside funds for maintenance or unexpected repairs after closing, because surprises are almost guaranteed at some point when buying an existing home.

Always have a professional home inspection completed. From there you can address any other issues on that report and do further investigations.

James, you should hire a professional home inspector to inspect every aspect of the home.

A home Inspection done by a professional Inspector is recommended.

1. Roof: Check for loose, missing or damaged shingles, signs of water damage, and any damaged flashing. 2. Foundation and Structure: Make sure the foundation is level, the walls are plumb, and that doors and windows work without sticking. 3. Electrical System: Check the age of the wiring and the circuit breaker box. 4. Plumbing System: Check for any current or past plumbing issues, such as old galvanized steel pipes, backup systems or foundation cracks. 5. HVAC System: Check for proper maintenance, age and energy efficiency rating. 6. Appliances: Make sure all of the appliances, such as the dishwasher, fridge and oven, are in working order and are up to date. 7. Exterior Issues: Look for evidence of termites or mildew, peeling paint, cracked or crumbling stucco, or any other exterior damage. 8. Local Community: Do some research into the local schools, safety, and other amenities nearby before purchasing a house.